In 2001, the National Research Council of the USA produced a booklet identifying many of the responsibilities, opportunities, and other issues faced by young faculty as well as graduate students completing their theses or dissertations. Similar groups have prepared other works. In particular, it is clear that there have been dramatic changes in scholarship that have resulted from the availability of computer tools, the shift to digital libraries, and the tremendous increase in resources available to young researchers (with respect to computing, networking, and content). Such researchers should learn about electronic publishing, should use digital libraries, should be aware of intellectual property rights, and should leverage new opportunities made available through the enhancement of related technologies and infrastructure. These all encourage involvement in ETD activities, and lifelong participation in the world of scholarly communication that in many cases was first made visible to them in connection with their ETDs.
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